Opinion Column - I have blindly supported Bombardier for decades in hopes
they would lead a passenger rail renewal in Canada. Sadly recent events have
lead me to the conclusion that it may be time to look outside of Canada for
passenger rail companies. These companies are willing to lobby the government
for modern passenger rail service, build their trains here and deliver them on
time.
I even supported Bombardier in 2004 when their Canadian made Las Vegas monorail had parts fall off the monorail vehicles to the ground during service. This caused the line to be shut down on two occasions.
After the failed Jet Train promotion it seemed Bombardier
turned their backs on Canada as a place to lobby, invest and build modern high
speed trains in. Yet around the world Bombardier had become a leader in building
high speed trains and lines even competing and cooperating with China on their
vast high speed rail system.
In conclusion, what is good for Bombardier may not be what
is good for Canadians or the future of passenger rail in Canada. It is time for our government and the public to welcome and encourage other passenger rail manufacturers into this country.
Here are a couple events in Bombardier's past..
In 2002, I advocated strongly for Bombardier and their Jet
Train. They made the large financial decision to actually build a demonstration
vehicle. They promoted the Jet Train for corridor use in several locations in
Canada and the USA. Sadly the timing was wrong as both the Canadian and USA
governments were being run by anti-passenger rail leaders in 2003 and funding
was never given to buy any Jet Trains.
I even supported Bombardier in 2004 when their Canadian made Las Vegas monorail had parts fall off the monorail vehicles to the ground during service. This caused the line to be shut down on two occasions.
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| Bombardier Las Vegas Monorail |
As mentioned previously on this site, high speed rail
manufacturers from around the world are hesitant to even lobby in Canada, let
alone invest, as they feel Bombardier will win the bid even if they do not have
the capacity in Canada to build them.
Today the situation with Bombardier in Canada can only be described
as despicable. As widely publicized the Quebec government gave Bombardier $1.3
billion to help in their CSeries Jet problems. Then in 2016 the Canadian
government gave Bombardier a $372 million loan again to fix their ailing
aerospace problem.
So what do executives in Bombardier receive for taking so
much taxpayer money? They are given bonuses… I will not dwell on this fact as
it has been widely reported in the papers.
Suffice to say there is not a Corporate ethics policy at Bombardier.
Over on the train side of Bombardier, there is the Toronto LRV
debacle. Bombardier have failed to deliver their LRV on time and this has led Metrolinx trying to cancel the contract with Bombardier. Unfortunately a recent court
order prevents Metrolink from getting out of the contract until a dispute
resolution process has taken place. This may take months/years to resolve as
Bombardier will appeal any decision against them.
Paul Langan
"Lamar Aiazzi said...
ReplyDeleteHi Paul, Generally agree with your assessment of Bombardier in this blog. You are incorrect in saying that Bombardier financed the JetTrain. The U.S. taxpayer was the actual financier, as one of your videos on the JetTrain, quoting an FRA official clearly proves. Nevada Intercity is pursuing putting the JetTrain into production, as Bombardier no longer controls its fate."
Sometimes people advocate because they have true desire to advance an issue for the benefit of the society they live in. Sometimes they advocate for monetary gain. The fact that you advance a negative opinion of a local manufacturer without assessing the performance of its competitors leads to a strong suspicion that the latter is the case. Bombardier is a leading manufacturer of trains in Central Europe and its rail division is actually based in Germany and has been seen as a leader in the technology in this area and in China. However sometimes competitors finance bloggers to disparage their competition and sometimes hedge funds do the same to support short positions ... you don't impress me as a particularly impartial and altruistic person and someone who spell checks his writing.. haste makes waste...but good on you to get on to CBC... calls into question their journalistic ethics though.
ReplyDeleteJim,(no last name given) Pretty funny conspiracy theory, but you are dead wrong. You mention Bombardier and ethics in the same article. I find that ironic considering Bombardier Canada recent ethical conduct http://montrealgazette.com/business/local-business/aerospace/quebec-decries-shocking-bombardier-bonuses-after-taxpayer-aid .It is true, like many other Canadians, I am disgusted with the actions of this company.
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